Pakistan on Thursday reacted to the new “moral code” for men and women issued by the Afghan Taliban government, saying women have inherent right to education in accordance with the injunctions of Islam.

“Pakistan’s position on the rights of women and girls, especially for their inherent right to education, is clear and consistent,” Mumtaz Zahra Baloch told reporters at her weekly briefing while responding to a question about the recent moves by the Taliban government.

The Kabul administration recently issued a raft of new measures that imposed further restrictions on women and new dress code for the men. Many observers see the move as an attempt to revive the Taliban’s first rule from 1996 to 2001.

“We believe that every man and woman has the inherent right to education, in accordance with the injunctions of Islam, and Islam grants equal access to education and women’s rights. Islam, we believe, is an egalitarian religion that guarantees women the right to education and inheritance to property,” the spokesperson said.

“It also guarantees their voice in public sphere and the right to a decent life free of violence. The Constitution of Pakistan guarantees these rights to women of Pakistan and we wish similar rights for women everywhere,” she added.

When the Afghan Taliban returned to power in August 2021, there were questions whether their second term would be different from the first one. Some argued that Taliban have learnt lessons from the past and their policies would be moderate. However, after initial positive signals, the Taliban government gradually brought back the old edicts. The ban on girls’ education and denying women other rights has become the major hurdle in the way of Taliban getting formal international recognition.

Following the fresh decree, the chances of Taliban recognition have diminished further. On TTP, the spokesperson said Pakistan’s position with regards to the terror groups in Afghanistan is clear.

“We have, on numerous occasions, presented evidence of the activities of these terror groups, which have hideouts and sanctuaries inside Afghanistan, and the concerns of Afghan territory being used to foment terrorism against its neighbours is not just the concern of Pakistan. You may have seen recent reports of the United Nations, where they have highlighted the activities of these terror groups inside Afghanistan. So, we urge the Government of Afghanistan to take action against these terror groups and to ensure that these terror groups do not stage terror attacks against Pakistan.”